Solano County

LANGUAGE

The Census asks questions about language use at home to locate groups of people who speak a language other than English. Their isolation or integration into a primarily English speaking community can be determined by their ability to speak English proficiently.

Language Spoken at Home, 1990-2000

1990

2000

Number

Percent

Number

Percent

Only English

250,842

80.72%

276,347

75.44%

Spanish

25,312

8.14%

44,187

12.06%

Other Indo-European*

8,665

2.79%

10,404

2.84%

Asian Language**

25,354

8.16%

33,918

9.26%

Other

596

0.19%

1,446

0.39%

Total Population Age 5+

310,769

100.00%

366,302

100.00%

Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 2000

Language Spoken at Home:

Number

Percent

Spanish

20,721

46.89%

Other Indo-European*

2,740

26.34%

Asian Language**

12,295

36.25%

Other Language

398

27.52%

Total

36,154

9.87%

Population Speaking English Less Than "Very Well" in 1990

Language Spoken at Home:

Number

Percent

Spanish

10,565

41.74%

Other Indo-European*

2,211

25.52%

Asian Language**

9,353

36.89%

Other Language

118

19.80%

Total

22,247

7.16%

* "Other Indo-European" excludes English and Spanish. "Indo-European" is not synonymous with "European." French, German, Hindi, and Persian are all classified as Indo-European. Hungarian, on the other hand, is lumped into "Other Language."

** "Asian Language" includes languages indigenous to Asia and Pacific islands areas that are not also Indo-European languages. Chinese, Japanese, Telugu, and Hawaiian are all classified here.

Also note that ability to speak English "very well" is based on the self-assessment of those responding to Census questions, not on a test of language ability.